Meralco coach Luigi Trillo lamented how big of a letdown it was to lose coming off a massive win over Magnolia in the PBA Season 48 Commissioner’s Cup.
The Bolts came into Wednesday’s affair against Phoenix Super LPG in high spirits following the 85-80 shocker they pulled off against the conference’s top seed last weekend in Iloilo City.
However, they fell flat to their younger counterparts.
“Definitely a letdown,” the veteran mentor told reporters moments after their 93-83 defeat to the Fuel Masters at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
Much of Meralco’s disappointment stems on how the loss has badly affected the team’s bid of securing a top four finish in the eliminations.
From having a chance at the no. 1 spot following that out-of-town win, the MVP Group-owned franchise is now in danger of falling out from the top four and missing on the twice-to-beat advantage for the quarterfinals.
As it stands, the Bolts are in a three-way tie with San Miguel and Ginebra at the no. 3 spot in the team standings. The teams all carry similar 7-3 records.
They’d need either of the SMC teams to lose their final games – the Beermen will face Blackwater on January 12 while the Kings take on NLEX the next day – and then beat Terrafirma on the 12th as well to lock a top four spot.
But it would have been much easier for the crew had they taken care of business against Phoenix, who has secured a win-once edge.
“Sayang. We could have had 8 wins. The top team is at 9. Because of that, all of a sudden, three-way tie, you [may] drop to fifth,” said Trillo.
As difficult as their situation has become, though, there’s no point in crying over spilled milk, according to the champion bench tactician.
“It’s tough for us. But we just have to focus now on the playoffs,” said Trillo. “[If] we’re fifth, we’re better than seven other teams. [Now] we’re tied with three teams. We just have to see and beat another team twice.”
